


cherry lemonade

by yeonkai



Category: TOMORROW X TOGETHER | TXT (Korea Band)
Genre: Arcades, First Meetings, Fluff, M/M, taejun for the heart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-10
Updated: 2021-02-10
Packaged: 2021-03-16 11:21:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,962
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29331510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yeonkai/pseuds/yeonkai
Summary: of accidental first meetings and fluttering feelings
Relationships: Choi Yeonjun/Kang Taehyun
Comments: 4
Kudos: 56





	cherry lemonade

**Author's Note:**

> this is a little taejun drabble that i completed a while ago and was just gathering dust so i decided to post it, enjoy!

Kang Taehyun looked up momentarily from the arcade floor he was sweeping, and cast a wary glance at the tall windows letting in slivers of light high above him, noting the ominous dark clouds that had gathered overhead. What simply started as a gentle pattering of rain against glass had quickly escalated into harsh droplets instead, telltale signs of nothing other than a storm brewing. As if he had been speaking his thoughts aloud, a thunderous clap resounded, echoing around the wide, empty arcade, and causing him to flinch slightly. He shuddered as cold air swirled around him, motivated only by the thought of his own warm bed waiting for him at home. 

Considering the poor souls unlucky enough to be caught outside in this weather, he was grateful to be indoors, however unfamiliar and lonely this place was at night compared to the buzz and energy of the daytime. Taehyun  _ wished _ he could work here during the day instead, but since this was all that was available, he had no choice but to accept it, being the broke college student that he was. At least it wasn't that difficult of a job, because who in their right mind would want to break into this sad excuse of an arcade, especially at night? He squeezed his eyes shut briefly, pitying himself and his four hours of sleep, and continued sweeping. 

It wasn't long before the floor was polished so well that he could see his own robotic expression in it, but still he continued to clean, bored out of his mind. When the broom slipped out of his fatigued hands and clattered noisily onto the gleaming bowling alley, only then did he snap out of his mindless state, just to suddenly realise how very sleep deprived he really was. There, he too dropped next to the fallen broom and turned on his back, staring up at the storm raging miles above. Maybe here, even on the cold laminate flooring, with his slight frame enveloped in his favourite comfortable, oversized hoodie, he could catch a few more hours of sleep… Before he knew it, with a tiny contented sigh, his delicate eyelashes fluttered closed.

—

"Uh… pretty boy?"

"What in the…" Taehyun reluctantly peeked through his eyelids, hesitant to open them fully just yet. He vaguely caught sight of a hand waving in front of his face before he settled back down and prepared to drift off again. 

_ A hand? _

His eyes flew open, and the glare of the lights turned up to full brightness was the first thing to grace his vision, almost blinding him so that he abruptly sat up and rubbed his eyes repeatedly, muttering mixed curses to himself. After assuring himself that there was no such thing as disembodied hands floating around arcades, and that it must simply be an unusual side effect caused by insufficient sleep, he cautiously lowered his hands and peered in all directions. And screamed.

Leaning casually against the wall, as if he was used to people screaming at the sight of him, was one of the most unfairly attractive boys Taehyun had ever had the fortune to witness, although this was contrasted by the annoyingly smug expression he wore on his perfect features, almost as if he knew the effect he was having on the small, panicked boy. He was quite tall, with thoughtful, dark brown eyes, clear, pale skin that glistened in the neon lights emitted by the games placed all around, hair dyed a shocking yellow, making him look kind of like a highlighter, and wearing a winning, seemingly well-practiced smile.

The boy cleared his throat loudly, which brought Taehyun to realise that he had been staring at this boy for a good thirty seconds or longer. Embarrassed, he averted his disbelieving eyes and busied himself with getting to his feet, though he was still a little unstable from just having woken up, as a steady blush crept up his face.  _ Was he still dreaming? _

"Hey." the stranger sent a wink in his direction.

Taehyun knew exactly what type of game this boy looked like he was trying to play. 

"Care to explain yourself?" he retorted, crossing his arms and trying to look intimidating, which wasn't easy when you were swamped in a soft, fluffy hoodie. Still, he did his best. "What are you doing here at this time of the night?"

"Actually, doll, it's the morning—you know, 2am."

"Don't." deadpanned Taehyun, trying to ignore the fact that this handsome boy had called him  _ pretty boy  _ and then  _ doll,  _ instead opting to be a good employee. 

"Jeez, alright!" the boy held up his arms in mock surrender. "I don't know if you've noticed—I mean, you were doing pretty well passed out on the floor—"

"Cut to the chase."

"I'm getting there! Well, I was unfortunate enough to be caught in the middle of  _ that _ ," he gestured to the storm lashing against the window panes, with occasional flashes of lightning, "and I noticed that one of the doors around here was a little loose, so… here I am?"

Taehyun groaned. No wonder it had been so cold in here. He knew that he had forgotten to do  _ something _ , and as a result, he was now trapped here with an annoyingly attractive boy who had already tried to flirt with him. Great. "Absolutely fucking great." he mumbled under his breath. 

"Look, I don't want to get you in trouble, so I'll be gone as soon as I can, okay?" 

"You'd better." snapped Taehyun, shooting him a glance that was probably less murderous than he’d hoped for. Though he hated to admit it, he was mostly hopeless around good-looking boys, but he had to do his best not to let his guard down.

"So you'll let me stay? Just for a few hours?"

He rolled his eyes exaggeratedly. "I  _ suppose _ so."

The boy's face lit up with a brilliant smile, and Taehyun  _ swore  _ his heart skipped a beat, or two, or several. He was never admitting that, of course.

“Great!” beamed the neon haired boy, practically skipping towards Taehyun and slinging a lazy arm around his neck, causing the latter’s face to promptly turn the same colour as his tomato-red hair.  _ So much for not letting my guard down _ .

“H—hey!” he yelped, shoving the other off of him with a little  _ too _ much strength, most likely because of his frustration at how easily he had become flustered. “Ever heard of personal space? Because I like mine. A lot.” 

“You’re no fun.” pouted the other boy, suddenly looking so adorable that Taehyun had to resist the urge to crouch down beside him and squish his cheeks. “An arcade employee with no sense of fun.”

“Well, I would say I’m more like the ghost that haunts this place after everyone’s gone,” remarked Taehyun drily. “I’m absolutely terrifying.”

The boy snorted. “Terrifying? With such a cute face?”

Taehyun feigned an expression of indifference, doing his very best to hide the fact that he felt like melting into a puddle. What he did not expect to see was the seemingly confident boy to be reduced to a blushing mess.

“Wait, I mean—that’s not—” he spluttered, failing to form a coherent sentence much to Taehyun’s amusement.

“It’s okay, I would be embarrassed too if I said a line like that.” he said sympathetically, patting the yellow-haired boy on the back. 

However, the boy recovered in record time and was chattering away again. “Is there any way we could perhaps play some of the games here? Because as much as I would like to sit and stare at your face for a few hours, I’d rather do something a little less creepy.” He accompanied his cringeworthy lines with a wink at the red headed boy.

Taehyun sighed. It was going to be a long night.

—

The boy jumped off of  _ Dance Dance Revolution.  _ “Well?” he said eagerly, with the air of a child looking to a parent for approval. “How was that?”

_ Flawless,  _ Taehyun wanted to say, after witnessing the mesmerising way he had made the game follow his every movement, rather than the other way around. “Alright, I suppose.” he said instead, shrugging nonchalantly. The boy raised an eyebrow, as if he had expected more, but thankfully didn’t press further. Taehyun didn’t know how he would’ve held out if he did. 

They wandered aimlessly around the empty arcade. “What about this classic?” The boy gestured towards the  _ Mario Kart  _ machines. “Let’s see... if you win I’ll tell you my name.”

Taehyun was suddenly wide awake. “And if you win?”

“You’ll tell me yours.”

Several rounds of  _ Mario Kart  _ later, both boys were locked in their fierce battle at 19 wins to 19 due to the fact that they kept asking for rematches, and each refused to back down.

Taehyun narrowed his eyes. “Last match.”

The boy tightened his grip on the steering wheel. “You’re on, pretty boy.”

The familiar countdown began on both screens. As soon as it ended, Taehyun slammed his foot down onto the pedal and his virtual kart shot forward. 

On the final lap, they were neck and neck as they neared the finish line. The shortcut was coming up although they both knew it was there; the other boy had seen Taehyun use it earlier. 

At the last moment he yanked the wheel and veered into the shortcut, but blinked in surprise when he wasn’t followed. Upon leaving the shortcut, his kart hurtled over the finish line in first place whilst the other boy ended in second. He looked over, confused.

“Did you just let me win?” 

“Of course not!” said the other boy almost defensively. “W—why would I do that?”

“You could’ve taken the shortcut at the end.” reasoned Taehyun.  _ Did he really let me win? _

“I forgot about the shortcut, alright?” he huffed, standing up and crossing his arms. “But it was a good game.”

“That was the most fun I’ve had in a long time.” Taehyun yawned, stretching his arms. He looked to the ceiling and noticed that the storm had long since stopped, by the look of the clear, blue sky.

The boy followed his gaze. “Well, I should probably leave now.”

Taehyun felt a twinge of disappointment and judging by the other’s downcast expression, he was feeling the same way. He couldn’t help but also feel a little happy because the boy was reluctant to leave him.

“Wait! You have to tell me your name.”

“I didn’t forget.” he grinned.

The boy gently took his hand and placed a crumpled piece of paper inside, closing each of his fingers back up around it, as if he was handling the most precious thing in the world. 

He started towards the door as if to leave, but suddenly turned back and pulled Taehyun into him, wrapping his arms around the smaller boy who was surprised but instinctively hugged back, not wanting the moment to end. His embrace was warm and familiar, nearly as good as his cosy bed back at home, maybe even the tiniest bit better. He smelled like vanilla; a comforting, nurturing scent that made Taehyun want to close his arms tighter around the boy and never have to let go. However, the hug ended as abruptly as it began and with a last wink and a whispered “See you,” he slipped around a door that was slightly ajar and was gone, leaving a blushing boy enveloped in an oversized hoodie. 

Taehyun smiled to himself as he unwrapped the folded paper with an untidy “Yeonjun” scrawled on the inside followed by a string of numbers. 

Perhaps, he thought, as he lifted his phone and opened the “Contacts” app, they would be meeting again sooner than he thought.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you so much for reading! hope you liked it, you can find me on [twt](https://www.twitter.com/yeonk4i) ♡


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